Katie Chansler
I’m an Impact Marketing Specialist at Autodesk and joined the company about a year and a half ago. In my role, I’m responsible for elevating Autodesk’s reputation as a leader in sustainability. I do this through project managing our annual impact report and working with the rest of the impact marketing team to hone our sustainability messaging and storytelling.
Autodesk’s annual impact report is our opportunity to reflect on what we have achieved over the last fiscal year with our impact strategy. We have three impact opportunity areas: Energy & Materials, Health & Resilience, and Work & Prosperity. This report is our chance to share our progress, highlight innovations, and celebrate what we have accomplished with our partners and customers.
The power of collaboration
It’s important for us to release this report because it shows how we not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk, every year. It holds us accountable and encourages transparency across all the areas we report on.
This year’s report included more than 100 stakeholders and contributors across Autodesk. It’s an incredible opportunity to hear what everyone is working on and how the entire company is working to make a difference. It’s a process that starts almost immediately after we publish the previous report and goes right up until the launch date.
With sustainability and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) being an ever-evolving field, we are constantly looking for ways to make sure our process and messaging align with best practices and changing recommendations. One exciting update we made this year was changing the structure of the report. We did this so that it better aligns with how we are creating impact through our operations, in partnership with our customers, and our industries. We think this change will allow report readers to more easily find the information they are looking for and understand how we work across all our channels to effect change.
Inspiring stories of impact
I see stories and information from the impact report show up in presentations and other pieces throughout the entire year – this demonstrates just how much impact means to Autodeskers across the company. My team is constantly receiving requests for impact stories and examples, and the report is a way to consolidate the key highlights from the last fiscal year.
I love working on the impact report because I’m able to see all the incredible things we’ve accomplished as a company in the past year. You’ll have to read the report to see all our highlights, but here are a few initiatives that show how we are making a difference to deliver better outcomes for our customers and the world:
- First, not only did we source 100% renewable energy for our facilities, cloud services, and employee work from home, but we also funded the installation of a rooftop solar system at our Birmingham, UK, facility that is expected to meet 20% of the site’s electricity needs.
- This was also the first year that we hosted the Sustainability Leadership Summit at Autodesk University, which provided an opportunity for ESG leaders from our customers to gather and learn more about how to use technology innovation to address climate change and deliver a positive impact on society.
- Last November, we continued our involvement at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) by supporting the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Buildings Pavilion. While meeting with representatives, partners, and policymakers from the building and construction community, we discussed ways to collectively drive progress in areas such as decarbonization and embodied carbon emissions.
Encouraging action and driving change
In the near term, I’m the most excited to share the FY23 Impact Report with fellow Autodeskers to celebrate everything we’ve achieved. It feels great to have an end product that we can be really proud of, and that is truly a collaborative effort across all teams and departments at Autodesk.
May is also our Global Month of Impact, which is a way for employees to learn more about impact at Autodesk and how they can contribute directly to our efforts. (Personally, I am looking forward to going into our San Francisco office to help build solar lights and learn more about renewable energy.)
We have received amazing feedback on the transparency and rigor that we include in the impact report. We have also heard that not only is this report read by investors and raters, but it is also read by prospective employees when they are deciding if they want to come work for Autodesk. This shows how important it is for current and potential employees that they are working for a company that embraces a culture of impact and wants to make a difference.